"At the end of 1991, we bought five
Boeing 727-200s from Lufthansa and took
two 737-400s from GPA," he continues.
"This year, we are leasing four more
737-400s — two from GPA and two from
Boullion Aviation Services — and the
Caravelles have been retired. We have also
expanded our ground infrastructure."
Istanbul Airlines has always been self-
handling at the main Turkish airports.
The carrier has invested $4 million and
applied for the licences to offer third-
party ground handling at Istanbul, Izmir
and Ankara. It has also set up a catering
subsidiary, with flight kitchens at Is
tanbul, Izmir, Antalya and Dalaman. Ergin
says that this is reducing catering costs by
30%, compared to the prices charged by
Turkey's previous monopoly inflight ca
terer, USAS, 70%-owned by SAS Service
Partner. For aircraft maintenance up to
and including D-checks, Istanbul Airlines
has an overhaul base at Ercan in northern
Cyprus. The expansion of the fleet and
ground services has pushed its total em
ployment to 1,600, from 1992's 900.
The carrier operates within Turkey and
to Europe and Israel, using a mixture of
charter and scheduled permits, but Ergin
points out that many of the charters
operate on a regular, year-round basis.
Tourism accounts for the bulk of traffic
and Istanbul Airlines has sister companies
in the field, as well as working with a
wide range of tour operators. "Visiting
friends and relatives" traffic, generated by
Turkish expatriate communities — nota
bly in Germany — accounts for about
20% of business.
Domestic services are geared largely to
the demands of the international network,
being used to position aircraft and carry
connecting passengers. It is only on the
Istanbul-Trabzon route that Istanbul Air
lines rhatches THY's capacity.
THY has been working to improve
competitiveness and service levels
throughout its network (Flight Interna
tional, 16-22 June), which Ergin feels is a
response to domestic, as well as foreign,
market pressures. He also points out that
the total Turkish share of the country's
international air traffic has increased,
from 37% in 1990 to 49% in 1992.
"Without Istanbul Airlines and the private
sector this would never have happened,"
he declares. He expects Istambul Airlines
to carry 1.5 million passengers this year
and aims to replace the oldest two 727s
with 737-400s by 1995. He is also evaluat
ing long-range and cargo markets.
For rival Onur Air, cargo is already a
profitable adjunct to its passenger busi
ness and was one of the factors influenc
ing its choice of the A320. "We are
transporting roughly 60-70t of cargo a
month, comprising fruit, textiles and elec
tronics," says the carrier's chairman
Tonguz Kazim. "Even in summer, with
FLIGHT INTERNATIONAL 8 - 14 September, 1993
TURKISH CARRIERS
174 passengers, we can still carry 4t of
cargo [per flight]."
Kazim set up T K Air Travel in 1987 to
organise charters between the UK, Turkey
and northern Cyprus. The company has
since expanded into inclusive tours and
set up offices in Germany and the Nether
lands. Kazim's original timetable foresaw
further expansion into airline operations
in 1993, but a shortage of capacity en
couraged him to accelerate the plans.
Onur began operations in May 1992
with a CFM56-powered Airbus A320 on
operating lease from GATX. The carrier
purchased a second A320 in July 1992.
This year, it is operating a total of six
A320s, with three of the additional units
on operating lease (two from GATX and
one from International Lease Finance)
and one on a summer-only wet lease from
Lufthansa. T K Air Travel accounts for
around 40% of Onur's business.
AWAITING LICENCE
The A320 has also been chosen by a new
Turkish carrier, United European Air
ways. Two International Aero Engines-
powered aircraft are being acquired via
Japan's Kawasaki, but are parked at Tou
louse, France, awaiting an airline-
licensing decision from the Turkish
authorities. The airline's president Berry
Van Eeuwyk plans to add a Boeing
757-200 leased from AWAS.
Van Eeuwyk was one of the founders of
Sultan Air in 1989, subsequently selling
out to set up his own carrier. This
summer, Sultan Air is operating eight
Boeing 737s (two -200s and six -300s)
and two Airbus A300s — giving it Tur
key's second-largest independent fleet of
jet aircraft. Additionally, an Antonov An-
24 is operated as a crew transport and for
domestic charters. "We have expanded
the fleet and the number of destinations
for this summer," says president and
majority shareholder Yavuz Cizmeci, who
signed a partnership and co-operation
agreement with GE Capital in 1992. "We
have also started doing our own ramp and
passenger handling and catering in Is
tanbul and are extending to Ankara,
Antalya and Izmir," he adds. The carrier
is responsible for its own A and B checks
and contracts out heavy maintenance.
TUR European Airways is the third-
largest independent and is wholly owned
by the Kavala trading group. It operates
four ex-Lufthansa 727-200s (two owned
and two leased from Credit Lyonnais) and
two McDonnell Douglas MD-83s leased
from GPA. General manager Aydin
Ertuzun says that the carrier is planning
to buy an additional MD-83 in 1994.
Turkey's line-up of independent opera
tors is completed by four carriers. Birgen-
air, which is owned by the Birgen family,
started flying in 1989 and now operates
its own refurbished Douglas DC-8-61,
plus a 757 and a 737-300 on finance
leases. Bosphorus Airways started opera
tions in March 1992, with two ex-JAT
737-300s on lease purchase from the US
Export Import Bank. It is now sub-
chartering a 757 as well. "We want to
keep a Boeing fleet," says general manager
Ilhami Ozbay.
Pegasus is a joint venture between Aer
Lingus (49%), Silkar and Net Holding;
operating two 737-400s, plus an A320
wet-leased from Adria Airways. Greenair
is a joint venture between Ali Sen, who
owns Istanbul's Fenerbahce football club,
and the Moscow Vnukovo airport division
of Aeroflot. It operates three Tupolev
Tu-154Ms and one Ilyushin 11-86.
Chairman Safi Ergin and vice-president
Aydin Ertuzun, speaking for Turkey's
independent airline sector in their OSHID
roles, welcome the CAD's tougher regime.
There has been a rash of short-lived
start-ups in recent years and greater
stability, together with some likely
consolidation, may enhance the sector's
reputation as it continues to grow. B
Onur and Bosphorus started operations in 1992